Corrosive
by BloodiLoveli
Summary: In an age where metal limbs and artificial eyes are a norm, a group of radicals emerges. Integrals and Scrap Metal, one group threatened by the other. The few remaining Scrap Metals band together, fighting for their right to live. "We're planning a revolution, ersatz boy, and if we get caught, we all die."
1. Zirconium Tetrachloride

**AN: Well look at this, I'm not dead yet. I think I've just signed my name in Death's book, though, 'cause I stared another story. Same update day as last time, I suppose. **

**Also, listening to the song ****_Radioactive_**** by Imagine Dragons might just enhance your experiance just a bit. Just a tiny bit.**

**Enjoy~**

* * *

A thick cloud of dust trailed behind a bus covered in rattling metal plates and grating. A head of dark hair rested against a clouded window that drooped on one side, the thick air swirling over curly hair. Dull green eyes stared listlessly at the patched seat in front of him. The body was jarred by a bump on the old road causing his cuffed wrists to bounce against his lap. The body next to him sat in a similar fashion; wrists cuffed, eyes glazed over in a highly drugged stupor, body slumped into the rough seat.

Gusting wind broke through the tilted window, stirring the curls atop the boy's head. At the disturbance, his eyes shifted. They grew wide and the dark ring around them glowed, the pulsing light gliding through his entire iris. Without blinking, his eyes swiveled around in complete circles and undulated in every direction. They twitched nervously, scanning his surroundings while his body was still, if not slightly tense.

The boy next to him started from his narcosis, jolting rigid in his seat. A few rough seeming men turned from their chairs, light glinting from their tinted gas masks, hiding black eyes and weathered faces. They murmured quite words to each other, the one on the inside flipping a switch on the ceiling. An opaque gas hissed through rusted vents resting just above the windows. The green eyed boy tried to hold his breath, to block his lungs from the rude, gaseous substance trying to rot his body from the inside.

He failed, lungs dragging in a loud breath of the toxic air, searing the tender flesh of his throat. His eyes clouded, head lolling about from side to side, lips drooping. The gas dissipated and the bus came to a jagged stop, the inertia of the boy's body slamming him mercilessly against the dark red and orange seat before him. The boy sitting adjacent to him was grabbed unceremoniously by the arm and dragged up, the dark haired boy treated in the same way.

They were prodded by the barrels on long guns, lifeless bodies walking slowly towards the exit of the bus. Their each step made the struggling bus shake and quiver as if it was to collapse on its wheels and never roll again. As the dark haired boy stepped from the high stairs of the bus and onto the sand covered ground, he took in a deep, silent breath of clear air. His eyes cleared for a moment and he seized his chance.

He walked by a guard, slamming his right elbow into the man's stomach with an animalistic cry. The loud noise woke the others around him, each body scrambling over the other. Some fought against their captors; others who were free of the guards' grasps ran to the dunes rolling in the distance. The green eyed boy fisted his hands together and swung them like a mallet into the guard's temple, the masked man spinning on his heal and dropping like a stone.

"Trash," snarled the guard donning the mask. Green eyes glared at him and the boy spat on the man's fallen body. He turned and followed the others in suit towards the dunes while struggling against the metal links of the cuffs. They dug deep into his flesh then snapped, his right arm flying out to the side. His left wrist stained red and dripped into the sand while his right glinted in the glaring sun with a metallic shine. He lifted his feet high out of the sand, running blindly towards any mirage that shriveled in the dry heat.

* * *

"Hey, Lovino, what's that thing over there," asked Feliciano, pulling his rusted binoculars from his eyes to look up at his brother, Lovino, resting atop of the sand covered building. Lovino lifted the scope of his beloved rifle to his eye, quickly scanning the horizon and locking onto the dark speck in the distance. He could make out a black shirt and beige pants that almost blended into the hot sand. He lowered the scope and shook his head.

"Probably some poor Integral bastard whose car crashed off the road back that way," said Lovino as he jabbed his finger over his shoulder. Feliciano let the looking glasses dangle around his neck as he climbed the ladder to join his brother on the roof. He lifted the high powered lenses to his eyes once again, the figure a bit closer than before. He studied it meticulously, watching the way its body swayed in the stark heat. A queer flash of light caught his eye and he zoomed in as much as the ancient looking glasses could on the stumbling being.

"Lovino," Feliciano gasped, "Oh! Lovino!" He dropped the binoculars and took his startled brother by the shoulders, shaking him back and forth.

"What? What is it," Lovino yelled, jerking from his brother's grasp. Feliciano smiled wide and pointed at the slowly approaching figure.

"I think he be one of us, I think he be!" Lovino quirked a brow at his enthusiastic brother but lifted the scope back up to his dark olive eye, closing the glowing orange one. He locked on the form bumbling through the sand and scanned his body for any metal bits shining in the sun. As the boy lifted his arm above his head in a vain attempt to shield his eyes from the cruel sun, Lovino spotted the dull glare of well used metal.

Lovino dropped his gun and leapt off of the roof, calling shot gun in the Runner, tossing his brother the keys while in the air. Feliciano hopped into the driver's seat and made the beautiful engine roar like the great lioness it was. Simultaneously, the brothers lowered metal goggles over their eyes; one glass disk in Lovino's held a crack that distorted his vision in his orange eye. Lovino stood in the side seat, upper body sticking above the naked metal cage of the Runner.

Feliciano released the brake and they took off at a break neck speed. Dust was kicked up behind them in a great maelstrom. They came up quickly on the stumbling boy, Feliciano with a horrendously huge grin and Lovino with an armed shotgun resting over his shoulder.

* * *

The green eyed boy stared with wide, burning eyes at the vehicle approaching him from afar. He wrapped his fingers around his neck and he squinted the pulsating hues in his head. The four wheeled monster circled around him and stopped abruptly, tilting on two of its side wheels then slamming back down onto the ground. The driver lifted himself up to stand above the caging of the large vehicle, leaning on the hot metal. A boy with dusted brown hair swung out of the passenger seat and landed with the grace of an angel on the rough ground, haphazardly thrusting a worn gun barrel towards the green eyed boy.

"Name," barked the sandy boy with the gun as he used his free hand to lift his goggles. The boy with the green eyes pulled his hands from his neck and used them to hide his face. He stumbled nervously over the syllables of his name like a fool. The dusty haired boy narrowed his dyadic colored eyes.

"Name, now," repeated the boy with the gun, raising the barrel and pressing the butt of it to his shoulder to aim it properly. At the end of the barrel, the boy was rigid, the green of his eyes throbbing in fear. He shook his head and patted his cheeks, earning him a perplexed stare.

"Antonio," yelled the boy, head still shaking, "I'm Antonio! Please, don't shoot me!" He then pressed his palms into his cheeks and put his head down, staring with quivering eyes at the ground.

"Oi, Antonio," Antonio lifted his head, "You a Scrappy?" Antonio looked at him with his brows drawn together. The gunner sighed, tapping his finger under his bright orange eye.

"Are you Scrap Metal?" Antonio flinched, the words stabbing him in a familiar wound. He nodded while worrying his lower lip with his teeth. He lifted his right arm and used the fingers of his left to grasp the flap of skin dangling from the top of his wrist. Pulling the stretchy covering down, he slowly revealed the grinding metal gears that his arm was comprised of.

Antonio flexed the metal fingers then curled them into a fist. He looked back to the boy with the gun that now rested at his side and aimed towards the ground. The boy slung the gun over his shoulder and rested his other hand on his waist. The heel of his boot dug into the ground and he jerked his head back towards the vehicle. Antonio walked cautiously up to the purring machine and pulled him self up with ease.

"Name's Lovino," said the gun wielder, pulling himself into the seat. He turned in the chair, the cushioning spewing from deep lacerations in the covering. Lovino stared at Antonio for a moment, eyes narrowed and calculating. Antonio gave him a grateful smile which caused Lovino to scoff and turn back around in his seat, lowering his goggles and yelling for the driver to go.

* * *

Antonio sat on an old couch that smelt of urine and old woman's perfume, waiting obediently on Lovino to return with a change of clothing and, Antonio hoped, a drink of water. He watched the few other people in the room amble about and chat quietly with each other. Some of them shot him wary glances over their shoulders while others ignored him completely. Again, he gnawed on his bottom lip, eyes darting around in their sockets trying to examine and store every detail of the room in his mind.

Antonio's fleshy fingers plucked at the strings that splayed from the seams of the cushions. A pang stabbed between his eyes, making a grunt escape his lips. He pushed his fingers into his temples and squeezed his eyes shut. Lights flashed behind his eyes, each brilliant burst accompanied by pain that dug deep into his Medulla and travelled through his spine. His back arched at the intrusive pain, eyes wide and mouth open in a silent gasp.

The people in the room spared him no more than a glance from the corner of their eyes, all to desensitized to physical suffering. As Antonio tried desperately to drag air into his lungs, Lovino strode back into the room with clothes draped over his shoulder and a canteen of water dangling from his wrist. He clucked his tongue at the sight of Antonio writhing on the couch and sat next to the boy.

"You got major drugged, didn't you," asked Lovino as he pushed the canteen against Antonio's lips. The water invaded Antonio's gaping mouth, causing him to sputter and splash the liquid down his chin and onto his shirt. Lovino made a displeased grunting noise, grabbing the choking boy by the hair at the nape of his neck to keep his head still.

"Drink the damn water, you'll feel better," growled Lovino, pushing the canteen back to the curly haired boy's lips. Antonio tried to get the water down his throat, hoping to get rid of the terrible pain. His lips trembled and his cheeks swelled with the liquid. He gulped it down loudly and coughed, turning to Lovino and showing him a large smile.

Lovino looked at the boy whose eyes watered and chest heaved while he smiled like an idiot. Antonio thumped his chest, grin still stretching his lips. Lovino shook his head at the strange boy but was all too aware of the small twitch upwards the corners of his mouth made. He then fell back into the aged couch which produced a large could of dust. With his arms resting on the back of the couch and ankle resting on his opposite knee, Lovino gave Antonio a hard look.

"So, you got caught by some Integrals?" Antonio nodded while a hand rubbed at the back of his head. He took another sip of water then recapped the canteen, handing the container back to Lovino. He dismissed it with a wave of his hand.

"Keep it. We all have one of our own. Don't want to pass any bugs 'round," said Lovino as he shook sand from his hair. Antonio shrugged, sitting the canteen next to him.

"So, Mr. Antonio," began Lovino, head cocked back against the seat, "Where'd that beaut come from?" Antonio pointed to his metal arm, and Lovino nodded. The green eyed boy rasised his shoulders in thought.

"When I was working at Factory a fe-" Lovino jerked upright in his seat and every chatting voice in the room died. Antonio furrowed his brows together.

"You worked in Factory," asked Lovino slowly. Antonio bobbed his head nervously. Lovino stood from the dingy couch and began to pace while murmuring curses that made the confused Antonio blush. A man with blonde hair from the other side of the room marched over to the pair and stood with an imposing shadow over Antonio.

"Do you know where they put your chip," asked the tall man, icy blue eyes hard and authoritive. Antonio lifted his left arm and bent his hand back, exposing the faint square bulging slightly from his caramel skin.

"It was in the right one before the accident. They had to put a new one in."

"Shit," whispered the blonde man, "Lovino, either get this boy out of here, or get that thing out of his arm!" Antonio jumped up from his seat, the sudden action startling the two standing people. Lovino grabbed Antonio's wrist and dragged him through a door, all the while cursing the boy's name and his mother's as well.

"You're making things so difficult for me, you tall ass bastard. You best count yourself lucky that I'm so nice," Lovino fumed, grabbing a rusted knife from a counter against the wall. He whipped it against khaki shorts, ignoring the rapid protests spewing from Antonio's mouth.

Lovino dug the tip of the knife just under the bottom of the chip, then forced it under the piece of technology. A sharp cry escaped Antonio's lips, which sent an unfamiliar pang to Lovino's chest. He pulled the knife quickly from the whining boy's wrist, the little square popping out from the small slit. It landed on the floor and made sincere friends with the bottom of Lovino's boot.

"Why," Antonio panted, grabbing his bleeding wrist to arrest the blood, "Why did you have… Have to do that?" Lovino shifted his eyes around the room and, although the room was completely devoid of people, he leaned in closer to Antonio, who did the same.

"We're planning a revolution, ersatz boy, and if we get caught, we all die." Lovino grabbed Antonio's arm while ripping a strip of fabric from the boy's black shirt. He tied it around the weeping wound and pulled the knot roughly tight, to which Antonio grunted.

"Even you."


	2. Vanadium Oxytrichloride

Antonio held the gun shakily in his hands. He had never wielded a gun before and the feeling was foreign to his skin. He felt a large weight pushing down on him and an odd sensation of power and testosterone-eliciting dominance.

Lovino stood to the green eyed boy's side, having been assigned the task of teaching the knot head how to fire a gun with some sort of sense. On his dusty exterior, Lovino frowned and kept his arms crossed in a sign of disapproval. Inside, however, Lovino was quite pleased by the wonderstruck expression that made its place on Antonio's face as soon as he touched the small gun.

Having been with him for a month or so, Lovino had grown accustomed to the dopey faces and the faint lisp that danced about Antonio's lips. He had learned that the mechanical boy wasn't just smiles and a cute voice, though, a few days earlier.

Antonio had proven himself a deadly shot with a throwing knife, and that his sinewy body was not just the product of good genes. The tall boy could lift the entire Runner, completely full, over his head with no more than a grunt. When Lovino had witnessed the sight, his first thought was filled with a blasphemous curse, and then he expressed his second thought out loud.

"If that jerk breaks my beautiful Runner, I'ma skin 'im." Lovino, harsh words aside, was quite impressed by the feat, and how Antonio was able to gently put his baby back on the ground made Lovino respect him just a bit more.

So, Lovino stood, arms interlocked, face hard, and eyes squinting in the obnoxious sun, watching Antonio flip the shining gun over in his hands. A hungry look passed over Antonio's artificial eyes, which Lovino thought was incredibly strange.

A queer feeling crept into Antonio's stomach and an urge to press the tarnished silver barrel of the old handgun into the mouth of an Integral came over him; man, woman, or child, he didn't really care. Their hysteric mumbles of vain begs for their lives graced his thoughts and the images of tears of fear staining cheeks tickled his fancy. A slow brushing of the sensitive trigger, a loud, beautiful sound, eyes wide in frozen disbelief, and an empty hole at the back of the cranium. How does it feel to be incomplete now, you horrible Integral?

Then, Antonio caught himself, almost gagging at the thoughts his mind ran wild with. Children? Wide eyed, beautiful, innocent little children? A sad look over shadowed Antonio's eyes and he turned to where Lovino was standing. He thrust the butt of the gun in Lovino's chest.

"I refuse to use this," said Antonio sternly, eyes sharp and worried. Lovino pushed the gun back at Antonio. His hazel eye had an edge to it that scared Antonio, but he still declined the gun. Lovino let a growl escape his lips and he snatched the gun from Antonio's hands.

"Are you not enough of a man to use this," Lovino waved the gun in the face of the taller boy. Antonio, though larger and much stronger, felt small under Lovino's multicolored gaze. He puffed out his chest, trying to intimidate the bear challenging him.

"I am, but that doesn't mean I have to use it," said Antonio lowly, "I'm a big enough man to not need a gun." Lovino scoffed.

"You, on the other hand," said Antonio cheekily, rubbing his hand in the smaller boy's auburn hair, to which Lovino scowled. The sound of quickly approaching footsteps met their ears then, and a loud voice called out to them. Feliciano was racing towards the boys, bare feet nimble in the hot sand.

"Lovino! Lovino!" Feliciano's feet thumped the ground hard as he neared the pair watching his approach. He smoothed his hair off of his forehead so he was able to see where he was heading. As he reached Lovino, his breath held little tiredness or fatigue.

"Our scouts, brother, have spotted an Integral vehicle! Eh… We need you to come back to the quarters and prepare for an encounter. You too, eh, Antonio," Feliciano spoke in a tireless fashion. His arms flailed wildly and his rapid speech was laced with a strange tic. Lovino nodded, breaking into a run through the sand. Antonio took off after him, astonished by the speed that the boy's legs shifted over the ground.

As Antonio was running, his eyes noticed a faint cloud of dust rising in the distance. He tried to measure the distance of whatever was causing the storm of sand. He determined that, at the rate at which the cloud was approaching, they had only minuets before they were faced by the threat. His feet began to move faster against the ground.

Lovino, Feliciano, and Antonio reached their quarters still running. Lovino grabbed his battle worn rifle and climbed the ladder that led to the nest atop the building. Feliciano stuffed two long barreled handguns into the holsters hanging off of his jutting hips. He handed Antonio a small pouch attached to a belt with a stretching of his upper lip in a smile. In the pouch were a dozen throwing knifes which Antonio could balance perfectly on his finger. He wrapped the belt around his waist and rolled his shoulders to loosen the muscles he didn't even know were tight.

"We need to be out there, eh… Antonio," Antonio looked towards the shorter brother. He was startled by the arms thrown around his torso and the face buried into his chest. As Feliciano pulled away, his face was red and his eyes were wide with worry. His metal jaw clamped shut tightly then loosened with a whirl of gears.

"If a fight goes down, eh… Don't die, alright?" Antonio felt a smile morph his anxious expression and he patted the fretting boy on his shoulder. He let himself grin wide even though he was just as nervous as Feliciano.

"I'll give 'em Hell!" Feliciano gave a metallic smile.

"You best, 'cause me and my brother like you," said Feliciano with a hard pat on Antonio's own metal shoulder, "And Lovino don't like no one." Antonio gave a small laugh and the pair walked slowly out of the building and into the blinding sun.

The duo was met by a sole four wheeler that carried only one person. It was a man with dark hair and a double breasted coat that must have been blistering in the over bearing sun. He stepped daintily off of the open air vehicle and dusted off the black coat.

Antonio was stunned when one of the few female members of their Scrap Metal resistance, Elizaveta, walked right up to the man. She held up her metal hand, the fingers having been replaced by a double barreled gun, to the man's face. With a sweet smile on her pleasant countenance, she said something that almost made Antonio's jaw drop.

"Hello Roderich, dear. How are the children?"


	3. Disodium trioxosilicate

**AN: Hello! Well look at this, I can still kind of write things. I am not dead, and I am very sorry! I Have been so busy with weird stuffs. But, I'm going to try to keep a regular basis of updation (is that even a word?). I'm sorry I'm such a sucky updater guys, and if any of you till read this...**

**I love you. Enjoy~**

* * *

Roderich shook his head and used a gloved finger to calmly push the gun away. He cleared his throat, very aware of the multiple pairs of eyes glaring down on him; some he could see himself though he was sure there were many more strewn about, unseen. Flicking his own eyes around the area, he cleared his throat once again. Then he turned to Ludwig, walking slowly up to the man while everyone around him visibly tensed.

"I do not come to fight, Ludwig," spoke Roderich with a serious tone, "I wish to accomplish the opposite, in fact." A whisper of curiosity floated through the gathered crowd. Antonio looked over to Feliciano from the corner of his eye, noticing how the boy's rigid muscles that flexed over his shoulders in a way that showed he was ready to pounce at any provocation. Antonio, too, could feel his muscles growing taut with the strain of anxiousness. He rested his hand against his hip and drummed his fingers over the small pouch.

A warm gust of wind pulled against hair and clothing, stirring the apprehensive silence that was stretched in what Antonio would call an overly thespian manner. Ludwig looked down to the slightly smaller man standing before him, the nervous muscles twitching ever so slightly in his neck.

"And how so," came the man's heavy voice. Ludwig crossed his arms over his torso. Roderich looked over the rim of his glasses, adjusting them so that his eyes were not visible behind the glare they produced.

"An arrangement has been made, and if you so please, a few choice members of you so-called 'Resistance' can set foot into Plenarity without losing their gruesome metal heads." Roderich glanced sideways to the group to his left. He leaned in closer to Ludwig and asked quietly,

"Let us discus this privately?" Ludwig nodded then said in a stentorian fashion,

"Disperse!" Slowly, the group morphed and undulated away from the two conversing men. Antonio followed Feliciano into the shaded building and out of the glaring sun. They meet with an agitated Lovino resting on the couch with the unhappy rancor. Antonio sat himself down with a soft sigh on one side of Lovino while Feliciano flopped onto his brother's leg. Lovino grunted and kicked the boy off of him, sending him to the floor with a yelp. Ignoring the whimpering boy sprawled out on the floor, Lovino turned to Antonio.

"So, what was that pompous bastard here for," he asked, head leaning against the fluffed back of the couch. Antonio let himself sink into the faithful couch that served as his mattress for many nights and shrugged.

"Some kind of agreement, I think is what he said." Lovino raised an eyebrow at him. Antonio rolled his shoulders again, scratching at the small curls dancing about the base of his skull.

"We'd get to take a, uh, trip, I guess. To Plenarity." At this, Lovino raised both dark eyebrows over his separately colored eyes. A small sound of curiosity sprung from his lips. No Scrap Metal ever got to go to Plenarity, and if they did have the gall to try to sneak in, their heads became the equivalent of paste splattered on the wall.

The Integrals were everywhere in Plenarity. They ran shops, taught in schools, and controlled every part of the ruling monarchy with their radical ideals. The police force was thick with the hatred for metal parts and it was discreetly shown in the dead of night by gruesome crimes blamed on other Scrappies.

Then there was the blemish on the fallaciously beautiful face of Plenarity. Factory. Factory was a horrendous place filled with backbone of Plenarity, and it was the cause of so many untimely deaths that bodies were used as firewood to keep it warm during the harsh winter. The workers of Factory, all Scrap Metal, were belittled daily and treated with cruel detachment by their Integral overseers.

Lovino leaned his body deeper into the couch. He was certainly surprised by the offer, but felt it was no more than a ruse to lure the Resistance into a false armistice. His arms wound themselves tightly around his form and an unhappy grunt came form his throat.

"I don't like it. Nope, not a bit," said Lovino. Feliciano nodded, resting his head on his brother's knee. He looked up to the darker haired boy.

"But, Lovino," said boy looked down, "It's a great opportunity to get supplies, you know? So many of us are getting sick, and we're running out of medical stuffs." Lovino wrinkled his nose.

"Still can't say I ain't worried." Lovino twirled a hand in the air and rolled his sleeveless shoulders. He looked over to Antonio, eyebrows raised in question. Green eyes stared back, shoulders shrugging in indifference.

"I don't really like the idea," said Antonio, "But the decision is pretty much up to Ludwig, right?" An agreeing but dissatisfied grunt left Lovino's throat.

"Hopefully he'll have enough sense to make a good deal. The bastard is a, well, bastard, but he can make loopholes tighter than his ass." As Antonio snickered at Lovino's snide remark, Ludwig stuck his head through an opened door. With a crooked finger, he called Antonio and Lovino to him, the pair leaving Feliciano on the rank seat.

"Lovino, Antonio. Are you two wi-"

"Willing to go to Plenarity? Sure, I am," said Lovino curtly, while Antonio nodded mutely. Lovino looked behind him to his younger brother sitting backwards on the aged couch.

"He coming too?" Ludwig shook his head, and Lovino frowned. He cocked his head to the side and crossed his arms.

"Who all's going then?" Ludwig crossed his arms as well, as did Antonio so he did not feel left out. The blond man looked down to the glaring boy.

"You, Antonio, Elizabeta, and Toris," Ludwig said as he gave a nod with each name. A confused look showed on Lovino's face as he pulled his shoulders back. Ludwig shook his head at the boy, who scoffed and walked away from him.

Antonio's face also held a befuddled expression, extending an arm to the tall man next to him. He held his mouth open as a question worked its way to his tongue.

"Why us, Ludwig," inquired Antonio as he made a tossing motion with his extended hand. Ludwig glanced at Antonio from the corner of his crystal blue eye.

"You'll see." He then turned sharply away from the brunette, walking with heavy feet out of the rusted, sand beaten door to finalize his deal with Roderich.


	4. Ferric Chloride

The familiarity of the dilapidated bus drove wild shivers across Antonio's skin at odd intervals, his body subconsciously reminding him of his close swipe with death. He shifted constantly in his hard plastic seat, crossing and uncrossing his legs. Sweat gathered under his curled hair causing it to stick closely against his scalp.

Across from the nervous man sat Lovino, body rigid like stone in the rear-numbing seat. His eyes were shut tightly, jaw clenched and lips pursed. His mind was trapped in concerned thought. Never had the boy stepped a single foot into Plenarity, having heard only the worst of stories about the wonderful place from the other Scrap Metals he lived with. He worried for his brother, whom he knew could hold his own, but still had his nagging, older-brother-must-protect-younger-brother mentality bugging him.

Elizabeta swayed her head and swung her feet, humming a tune to calm the heavy mood in the stale air of the bus. Her stomach sat hard with anxiety while her body ached from the bumpy ride. She rubbed the hair atop the head of the shy boy sitting next to her, flashing him a toothy smile. Toris gave her a quivering grin in return. He then frowned as the feeling of bile rising in his throat plagued him again. His grip on the dented bucket he held in his lap tightened, the foul smelling thing already a third full of the product of the poor boy's extreme anxiety.

The bus continued on its dusty path, Ludwig pressing his heavy boot on the gas. He contained himself to a solemn silence, fearing the worst for his young companions and the obvious fate he was dooming them to. Every rotation the tires of the old bus made brought them closer to what could be horrible deaths, and the guilt dug deep into Ludwig's chest.

Ludwig clenched his white knuckles tighter around the cracked steering wheel and pushed himself back into his seat with a tense sigh. Antonio watched the back of Ludwig's blond head for a moment, and then resolved himself to look out of the window. The throbbing green of his eyes watched lolling dunes of sand and clumps of dry grass glide just outside of the dusty window he peered through. He propped his elbow on the lip of metal just below the window, resting his chin in his open artificial palm.

Antonio bumped his sweating forehead against the warm glass, eyes drooping as he thought of Plenarity. Amidst his encroaching fear and biting worry, a strand of golden hope wove itself into his heart. His parents lived in Plenarity, and, he hoped, they missed him as much as he missed them. His nose burned as tears threatened his dully glowing eyes at the thought of his mother's tender voice and the unkempt tuft of hair resting on his father's upper lip that trembled as his baritone voice boomed.

Green eyes watered for a moment, and then cleared, Antonio slowly sitting up straight in his seat. He turned his head, body jumping as his eyes locked onto a dyadic colored gaze. His face warmed. Lovino studied him with a fierce intensity, eyes narrowed slightly and dark eyebrows pulling together and reaching for his hair line. He was the first to speak, breaking the stress filled silence.

"You make a stupid face when you think too hard." Antonio raised his brow in question. He was most certainly not expecting that, but then again, he should have been used to Lovino's strange and infrequent observations of himself.

"I do? Sorry 'bout that," said Antonio as he stretched his legs, placing then on Lovino's lap. The younger boy scowled and shoved Antonio's heavy feet from his lap, to which Antonio replied with the replacing of his feet on Lovino's knees. Lovino rolled his eyes around and flicked Antonio's booted foot.

"Why you thinkin' so hard anyways," Lovino asked, bouncing his leg to make it hard for Antonio to keep his feet up.

"My parents. They still live in Plenarity, I think. I hope they do, anyways." As Antonio spoke, his voice softened. A quiet 'Oh' left Lovino's lips.

"Well, maybe you'll get to see 'em, eh?"

"Yeah." Lovino grimaced at the sadness lacing Antonio's voice, that unfamiliar pang striking him again in his chest. Lovino swore quietly and stopped shaking his leg.

"Hey, listen, Antonio, don't feel so bad," Lovino said hurriedly, shifting from his seat to the one next to the pouting boy. He sat facing Antonio, one foot on the floor of the bus, the other on the plastic of the seat. Antonio looked at him, a lonely smile pulling at his cheeks. As he was reassuring Lovino that he was fine, Ludwig's stentorian voice filled the bus, the vehicle coming to a jerky stop.

Lovino's body flew forward from his inertia, a loud curse flying as well, and Antonio grabbed the back of his black shirt to keep him from slamming into the metal floor. A retching sound replaced Ludwig's voice, followed by the sound of something sloshing against metal.

"We're here," spoke Ludwig, putting the bus in park and opening the corrugated metal door. With shaking legs, Elizabeta helped Toris exit the bus. She stopped before the steps, wrapping her arms tightly around Ludwig's chest. Lovino walked haltingly out of the bus, sparring Ludwig a curt nod, and Antonio followed closely behind, shaking the man's hand.

As Antonio took the first step off of the bus, a heavy hand was placed on his shoulder. He turned, eyes meeting with Ludwig's in a silent exchange.

_Don't let them die._

_I won't. _

They parted with understanding nods of their heads, and as the door closed behind Antonio, his heart began to beat in his throat. He walked with Lovino, Elizabeta, and Toris, towards the imposing gate that rose hundreds of feet above their heads. Shining marble walls seemed to stretch for miles in either direction, and the silver gate was blinding in the slowly falling sun.

Antonio suddenly felt small. He felt so painfully small and helpless, almost as if he was reliving the day he was first born. Here, seventeen years later, he felt like an enfant, and an instinctual longing for his mother's comforting bosom rose within him. Instead, he grabbed Elizabeta's hand with his own shaking fingers, clasping it as if it was the anchor that kept him from drifting away with on waves of fear.

Lovino swallowed thickly, his tongue dry and heavy in his mouth. He grabbed Antonio's metal forearm, gritting his teeth as he watched Antonio's green eyes pulsate and flash, Lovino's own orange one displaying the same emotions. Toris linked his hand with Lovino's, whole body quivering, and his legs almost failed him.

The four walked hand-in-hand towards the gate, towards the man whose eyes were hiding behind the glare of his glasses. Roderich was waiting for them. The Grim Reaper stood behind him, taking the form of a city built on the backs of the incomplete.

A bright blue sign read,

'Welcome To Plenarity'


	5. Hexyltrichlorosilane

**AN: Hi guys. I know, I'm horrible, I'm sorry. I have given up at trying to update regularly. I really am sorry guys... I hope you can bear with me , anyone who acctualy reads my word vomit. And if you do, I love you.**

**Enjoy~**

* * *

A limousine stretched past the quartette, and Roderich held the door open for them. They all stumbled nervously into the long car. Each member took a seat, their aching bums sighing with relief at the comforting plush that the seats were covered in. Toris gave a long sigh, relaxing his taught muscles completely.

"I expect you all are tired. I am going to drop you off where you all shall be staying while you stain the pristine face of my city." Roderich's voice held a mocking tone, one that grated painfully against Lovino's nerves. He clenched his fists tight, biting down on his tongue in a surprising show of self control.

"And I see you've brought no personal items with you," he clucked his teeth, "I almost expected you to be higher classed than that. Almost." Lovino dug his nails into his palms and grit his teeth hard. Antonio drew his eyebrows together, nudging the younger boy with his knee, eyes silently asking what was wrong. With a glare dripping with malice and flaring nostrils, Lovino shook his head. Antonio placed his warm hand on the boy's forearm, only to have it shaken off by fuming brunet.

The long car bumped a few times on the uneven turf surrounding Plenarity before it found the main roads of the city. Quickly, the limousine passed by people and scenery, as if the driver did not want them to be fully struck by the large city's majesty. The passengers were shook lightly when the stretched vehicle came to a quick stop in front squat building. The abode was riddled with large glass windows and roof tiles that seemed as if they were ripped from the tops of ancient Tuscan churches. As the butterfly doors opened to release the tense passengers, Elizabeta stopped Roderich from stepping out.

"How are my children, Roderich? I need to know." A barely noticeable desperation laced her strong voice, caught just barely by Roderich's whet musicians' ear. He gave a cruel smile, brushing her cheek with his thumb.

"The boys are fine. Sometimes they wake up during the night asking for their mother, and I have to remind them that their mother is an Incomplete, a disgrace. Who would want that kind of birther, hm?" The words stung Elizabeta, and she pushed his hand away from her face. She glared at the self satisfied smirk that laid claim to his lips and smiled. Then, she turned her back on him sharply to follow the boys into the house, hoping there was a room that had not been claimed just yet.

* * *

"What is this shit," asked Lovino, staring at the four twin beds in the room with their headboards pressed against the back wall. The small building seemed to consist of one big open space that accounted for the bedroom, living area, kitchen, and eating area. The only actual doors were the front and back ones, and the one that closed off the small bathroom.

"No privacy, seriously?" Lovino deposited himself on the bed closest to the corner and, short of urinating on it, claimed the fluffy mattress as his. Antonio, not much of a complainer, swan dived onto the bed next to Lovino's, to which the boy grumbled and threw his black pillow.

"Go away, you tall jerk. You talk in your sleep," said Lovino, laying on his side and supporting his head with his arm. Antonio made a questioning sound.

"Really?"

"Yeah, hun, ya do," Elizabeta shouted from the designated kitchen area, looking for something to eat. She bumped around the glasses in the cupboard, grabbing a glass and flinging open the tall refrigerator. Inside was an assortment of beverages that could satisfy any palette.

Elizabeta hummed while she peered inside, fingers wrapping around a single-serving bottle of cola. Then she grabbed a ginger drink and a tall bottle of water. She tossed the ginger soda to Toris to sooth his stomach.

"Antonio? Pop or water, dear." Elizabeta held up each of the bottlers in her hands, and Antonio chose the carbonated drink without hesitation. The cap opened with a pleasant hiss, giving Antonio a strong feeling of nostalgia, and he smiled.

Lovino hopped off the bed and sauntered to the fridge, giving its contents a cursory glance.

"Is there any wine or something in here," asked the boy, to which Elizabeta turned sharply. She shut the fridge door with her hip and crossed her arms, giving Lovino a chiding look.

"You're way too young for that stuff, Lovino," she said as she waggled her finger. The shamed boy felt his cheeks burn lightly with embarrassment, biting his tongue once again to keep from promptly telling her to kindly 'fuck off'. He crossed his own arms, and the bottle of water was shoved into his chest roughly. He was just able to catch it, saving it from the floor.

Elizabeta smiled at him sweetly. Lovino snarled back, but said nothing. He could not be rude to a lady, even if it was Elizabeta; he had a reputation to keep up.

Antonio snickered childishly as Lovino walked by, earning him a swift kick to his shin. The brunette whined, rubbing his bruising shin pitifully. Lovino glanced at him as he sipped the cool water. It poured slowly over his lips as Lovino absentmindedly imbibed the liquid, eyes drinking in the sight of Antonio's exaggerated pout. He felt odd, as if he was feeling something pooling in the depth of his stomach that should not be.

"Oh, fuck it," murmured Lovino, capping the water and burying himself in the dark covers. Antonio looked at the covered boy curiously, and then smiled. He rose from his bed and walked to where Elizabeta and Toris sat. As the three carried on a pleasant conversation with each other, Antonio caught himself glancing back at the black mound resting on Lovino's bed. The fourth time he did so, he caught sight of a hazel eye peeking out from the darkness, watching Antonio's back closely.

When Lovino was spotted, he quickly pulled the covers back over his face. His cheeks burned at the embarrassment of being caught by the object of his currents fascination. The boy on the other side of the room smiled.


	6. Benzotrichloride

**AN:Well, looke here, I'm updated on the day I said I would? I am surprised too, trust me. So, yep, finished this during the intermissions between matches on Black Ops. Fun.**

* * *

As the sun resigns to bed under the marble walls of Plenarity, its citizens don their best clothing and waste the evening indulging in nightly festivities. They go to dance, to drown their petty grievances in the best quality rum and the most aged wine, even frequent freak shows featuring the most grotesque of human kind. Tonight, a new show had been scheduled, a freak show with only four exhibits, and the house is packed.

* * *

Toris fidgeted with the starched collar of his white dress shirt, nervous sweat softening the once stiff cloth. His dark green eyes shifted constantly, always flickering back to the imposing machine in front of him. Lovino looked over to the jittery boy, sighing as he rested a gloved hand on his shoulder.

"Just calm down, you shaky bastard. No need to be nervous." Toris smiled to the brunette, but returned his gaze to the machinery. Since it was the heart that lied within Toris' breast that was made of artificial materials, and not anything on his outward carapace, an X-ray machine the size of the boy himself was needed to spy his addition.

Lovino slapped the boy's shoulder with a heavy hand and a smile grew on his features.

"The worst it could do is give ya cancer in, maybe, fifteen years. Good thing we probably wont live that long," Lovino said with a chuckle.

"Lovino," Antonio chided from behind them, "You'll make his poor heart over heat again." Lovino glared at him from over this shoulder, giving Toris' back one last pat before turning around to face the Iberian boy he treats like a pest. He jabbed the older boy's chest with a long finger, pushing on his sternum with increasing pressure. Antonio winced, looking at the shorter boy with knitted brows.

"What are you doing, Love?"

"Tryin' to stop your too goddamn happy heart, and if you call me 'Love' again, I will bite your nose off and feed it to you," Lovino hissed through clenched teeth with a visible twitch of the dark eyebrow over his glowing eye. Antonio gave a smile, one that was full of mischief and a promise for something Lovino was not sure of.

"Dully noted, _Lovino_," said Antonio, stressing the boy's name in an almost mocking way, "Now if you could kindly remove your finger from my sternum, that would be fantastic." With a snarl, Lovino jerked his hand away from the chest of the warm teen. He wiped his hand on his black dress pants and sighed.

"This isn't gonna be fun, this is gonna suck massive balls." Antonio nodded, slapping his hands against his hips before popping his neck. He turned to the velvet curtain blocking their view of the loquacious crowd that gathered to ponder at the sight of them.

"Well, at least we have each other, dear," said Antonio, tapping Lovino's cheek with the back of his hand. Lovino growled at the man and smacked his hand away. His face held a furious expression.

"I told you not to call me that," he seethed. Antonio tutted and waved his finger in the boy's face.

"You said I couldn't call you 'love'. You said nothing about 'dear'." Lovino narrowed his eyes at Antonio and raised a balled fist to his face, stopping short of the taller man's nose when Elizabeta called out to him.

"No fighting, no fighting," she said, "His face needs to be in the correct order when the curtain goes up, Lovino." She smiled to calm him, her face dazzling. Her long, pleated dress swayed like air around her as she stopped and her hair fell all to one side over her sun burnt shoulder. Her fair cheeks, stained red by the harsh sun, were splotched with a natural red of her own and her eyes twinkled mischievously.

Lovino looked at her, smiling back. He swiped a few stray strands of hair from her eyes, and she adjusted his tilted bow tie. Antonio felt a small grin showing as he watched the two. He turned when he felt a tugging at the tails of his coat.

"Hey, Antonio," asked Toris, motioning to the large X-ray behind him, "you don't think this is going to kill any one, right?" Antonio shrugged his shoulders and rested his hand on Toris' shoulder.

"Sure, why not? I mean, it looks pretty new, so I don't really think it's going to explode or anything." The features of Toris' face relaxed slightly, but tension still shone through.

After a moment of silence in the group, they could hear the chatter on the opposite side of the curtain calm down, followed by Roderich's voice amplified by speakers. They each spared each other parting glances, and then walked to their assigned part of the stage. At the end of his introduction, Roderich signaled for the curtain to be drawn up and the four oddities to be presented. He called each by their full names, and they walked towards the fromt of the stage, then back to their spots.

When Lovino's name was called, he sighed, and sauntered to the front with shaking knees. He looked down to the crowed, flashing devious smirks to the beautiful women in the front rows. As he turned to walk back, he sent an orange wink to a particularly cute dark haired woman over his shoulder. He could hear their giddy snickers and surprised gasps.

Antonio followed behind him, the last person to be called up. He smiled and waved with his whirling metal hand. The gears clicked against each other as he blew a kiss to another woman in the front row; one with sandy hair and eyes bluer than the sky at twilight.

Lovino watched Antonio complete the action with growing anger. His fingers twitched into fists, and he clamped his hands tightly behind his back. Antonio was dashingly handsome in his suit, and the blood red shirt complemented his skin in a way that Lovino thought blasphemous. He sighed once again, knowing it would not be the last time he would be doing so during that long night.

* * *

"I never want to do that again," said Elizabeta as she laid down in her plush bed. Antonio made an agreeing noise while Toris shook his head. Lovino grumbled something unintelligible from the refrigerator. Antonio walked to the kitchen area, opening the cupboard to find something to sooth his growling stomach.

With his head still in the cold refrigerator, Lovino peeked at Antonio lazily pushing things aside with one creaking hand and absentmindedly rubbing his stomach with the other. While the man looked stunning in his red shirt, thought Lovino, he looked a hell of a lot better without it.

With a loud bang of his head against the fridge's ceiling, Lovino cursed himself for his wondering thoughts.

Damn it, his brain shouted, stop you stupid jerk. Antonio looked at him, shocked by the strange noise the boy's head made.

"Good God, Lovino, why was that so loud? Is your head really hollow?" Lovino wrinkled his nose, kicking Antonio in his shin in the same bruise he left from the beginning of the day. Tears welled in Antonio's eyes and Lovino gave himself a satisfied grin.

"You're so mean to me, Lovino," cried Antonio as he hobbled back to his bed. The smaller brunette grabbed an icepop from the freezer and spared Antonio a sideways glance.

"Eat shit." He closed his lips around the cherry flavored treat, unaware that Antonio's eyes were still on his smaller form. Antonio whimpered for reasons Lovino misconstrued, and the green eyed boy let out a quiet 'mean' as he pulled his covers over his body, still rubbing his sore leg.


End file.
